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Arsenal ace spotted at airport wasn’t coincidence, could make way for £57m signing

Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas has revealed that they’ve made an approach to sign Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud this summer.

It comes just a day after the French international was seen at an airport in Lyon, with a fan taking a picture with him to spark speculation of an imminent exit.

Turns out that it wasn’t just a coincidence that he was in France, as Aulas has dropped a major hint that he could be heading back to Ligue 1 ahead of next season.

Speaking to L’Equipe, he said: “There has been an approach, at some point, for Giroud. He is a boy that we like, who scores lots of goals and who has a lot of ambition for Russia (World Cup).

“He told me personally that he wanted to take his time, that things were not completely defined with Arsenal, that he had a secret hope that he would be the number one striker next season.

“The key is Arsène Wenger. We are watching. We will try to very quickly sign a top European attacker.”

It’s added in the same report that Aulas has told Arsenal that they will have to pay £57m if they wish to sign Alexandre Lacazette, with his move to the Emirates likely to spell the end for Giroud in north London.

The former Montpellier ace has regularly scored between 11-16 Premier League goals each season since his move to England in 2012. However, that isn’t enough for a club hoping to win major honours, as they need a prolific scorer to fire them to trophies.

In contrast, Giroud does offer something different and so he has been, and will be, a useful player to have in the squad. However, whether or not he would be willing to settle for a back-up role remains to be seen.